It sounds like your son has a humeral lateral condyle fracture. Humeral refers to the upper arm bone. Lateral tells us it is on the outside of the elbow (medial would mean it was along the inside next to the body). Condyle is the term used for the round end of the humerus that helps form the upper portion of the elbow joint.

You may be noticing what's called a bone callus. When a bone fracture is healing, the body creates extra bone to fill in the break. A bridge of bone actually forms across the fracture site. The cast you wore kept the ends of the bone still while this bridge was being formed and helped prevent any shifting or displacement of the fractured edges of the bone.

Surgeons evaluate problems like elbow fractures and classify them in some way to help direct treatment. In the case of humeral lateral condyle fractures, the current classification system isn't working. It doesn't predict which fractures should be treated with pins to hold the bones together and which fractures need to be wired back together.

Your grandson may have a condition known as developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH), previously known as congenital hip dysplasia. This is a common disorder affecting infants and young children. The change in name reflects the fact that DDH is a developmental process that occurs over time. It develops either in utero (in the uterus) or during the first year of life. It may or may not be present at birth.

Infants under the age of six months are treated for developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH) with a Pavlik harness. The idea is to take a child with a poorly formed hip socket or dislocated hip joint and position the head of the femur (thigh bone) right in the hip socket. Then hold it there until the joint forms properly. That's where the Pavlik harness comes in.

You heard right! Young children should not go down a playground slide while sitting on another person's lap. This was the conclusion of a study looking at playground injuries. In particular, one pediatric surgeon reviewed the records of 58 children who sustained a tibial fracture over an 11-month period of time. The tibia is the larger of the two bones in the lower leg. Eight of those fractures occurred while going down the slide on the lap of an adult (usually the parent).

Despite equipment being designed for public safety, unexpected injuries can happen on any playground. In a recent study by one pediatric surgeon almost 14 per cent of all tibial (lower leg) fractures were caused when a toddler went down a playground slide while sitting on the parent's lap. It may seem like a safe thing to do to protect the child, but in fact, it is actually a risk factor for fractures of the lower leg while on the slide.

It sounds like your child had what's called a diaphyseal femoral fracture -- a break in the middle of the shaft of the upper thigh bone. This is an uncommon injury in a young child. Usually, there is a traumatic cause -- either a car accident or unfortunately, in someone this age, possibly child abuse.

Orthopedic surgeons have to keep up with the latest research and trends in treatment for many, many problems, conditions, and diseases affecting the musculoskeletal system. Pediatric orthopedic surgeons face some problems not seen in the adult population. And often, pediatric problems like diaphyseal femur fractures (a break in the long shaft of the thigh bone) are only seen occasionally, making it even more difficult to know what to do to get the optimum results.

Infants under the age of six months are treated for developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH) with a Pavlik harness. The idea is to take a child with a poorly formed hip socket or dislocated hip joint and position the head of the femur (thigh bone) right in the hip socket. Then hold it there until the joint forms properly. That's where the Pavlik harness comes in.